Curious about achieving strong and well-rounded buttocks? For both men and women, having firm and shapely glutes is often considered more appealing than a flat, less defined appearance.
Beyond the aesthetic aspect, a well-developed butt plays a crucial role in athletic performance and can significantly contribute to preventing back and hip discomfort.
Unfortunately, many individuals approach their glute training incorrectly, making five common mistakes that hinder them from attaining a sculpted posterior. Discover what these mistakes are and learn how to avoid them, enabling you to enhance the roundness of your glutes.
The guide also includes recommendations for the best exercises to achieve well-rounded buttocks.
Check out the video below from Jeremy Ethier for more information, or scroll down to read the full article and enhance your skillset and results.
Before delving into the errors that may be hindering your quest for a rounded buttocks, let’s first explore the anatomy of the glutes.
Comprising three muscles—the gluteus maximus, the gluteus medius, and the gluteus minimus—the glutes play a crucial role in shaping the rear.
The gluteus maximus, being notably larger than the other two muscles, stands as the largest and heaviest muscle in the human body.
Furthermore, it serves as a key determinant of sprint performance. Given its prominence in forming the majority of the buttocks and its significance in enhancing athletic capabilities, it becomes imperative to prioritize its training. However, many individuals overlook this focus due to five common mistakes.
The initial misstep that often leads to a flat, less defined buttocks is related to the choice of exercises.
The primary function of the gluteus maximus is hip extension, involving the action of propelling your hips forward.
Many so-called “glute exercises” available online either neglect hip extension altogether, concentrating on the smaller glute muscles, or they incorporate hip extension without facilitating the progression to heavier weights over time.
Optimal glute exercises are those that specifically target hip extension and allow for the gradual increase of weight over time. Examples include back squats, leg presses, Bulgarian split squats, deadlifts, and hip thrusts. While these exercises may not be flashy, employing correct form and steadily increasing strength with them will be the cornerstone of achieving the desired growth in your glutes.
The second common error in the pursuit of shapelier glutes is overemphasizing the quadriceps over the glutes.
In a leg press, adjusting your foot placement to a higher position on the platform and limiting each repetition when your knees reach a 90-degree angle allows your shins to remain vertical over the foot.
This modification places greater emphasis on hip extension, prioritizing the activation of the glutes over the quadriceps. This technique can be applied to unilateral leg exercises, such as one-leg leg presses, lunges, and Bulgarian split squats, further accentuating the engagement of the glutes.
Now, while we’ve addressed the issue of the quads dominating, it’s crucial to note that in certain glute exercises, the lower back and hamstrings may tend to take over. Let’s examine one of the most effective exercises for sculpting round glutes—the Romanian deadlift.
To emphasize the activation of the glutes, it’s beneficial to introduce some knee bend, thereby incorporating more hip extension into the exercise. Additionally, it’s essential to limit the range of motion to your mobility capacity. Identify the point in the mirror where your hips cease moving backward during the descent, and conclude each repetition at that precise point.
We’ve covered some of the best glute exercises, but it’s equally crucial to consider how you incorporate them into your workout routine for achieving a rounded buttocks. The key is to include exercises that target the glutes in diverse ways.
Bulgarian split squats, back squats, leg presses, and Romanian deadlifts are particularly effective in challenging the glutes at the bottom position. However, at the top position, these exercises do not maintain tension on the glutes.
Therefore, it’s essential to include exercises that challenge the muscles when fully contracted. The hip thrust and the 45-degree hip extension are excellent choices for this purpose.
To structure your glute-focused workouts, select 1-2 exercises that predominantly challenge the glutes at the bottom position and include 1 exercise that maximizes glute engagement at the top position.
Lastly, while selecting appropriate exercises and executing them with precision lays the foundation for success, some individuals—particularly those with prolonged periods of sitting—may struggle to effectively activate and feel their glutes working.
A beneficial approach to enhance this connection is through the incorporation of activation exercises.
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